Military spending as a share of GDP in Malta
Malta: Military spending as a share of GDP was 0.5% in 2019. ▲ Rising
Latest (2019)
0.5%
Change on year
up 9.6%
World rank
153rd
of 172 countries
All-time high
0.8%
in 1987
All-time low
0.2%
in 1970
Years of data
56
1964–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Malta, 1964–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for military spending as a share of gdp in Malta is 0.5%, measured in 2019.
The figure is up 9.6% on the previous year and down 7.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Malta peaked at 0.8% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 0.2%, in 1970.
Malta ranks 153rd of 172 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Malta, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 0.5% | — |
| 1965 | 0.4% | -9.6% |
| 1966 | 0.4% | -11.2% |
| 1967 | 0.4% | -10.5% |
| 1968 | 0.3% | -10.0% |
| 1969 | 0.3% | -11.6% |
| 1970 | 0.2% | -14.8% |
| 1971 | 0.3% | +14.2% |
| 1972 | 0.3% | +8.1% |
| 1973 | 0.3% | -6.4% |
| 1974 | 0.3% | +18.8% |
| 1975 | 0.3% | -3.2% |
| 1976 | 0.3% | +7.3% |
| 1977 | 0.4% | +4.9% |
| 1978 | 0.4% | +11.6% |
| 1979 | 0.4% | +2.1% |
| 1980 | 0.4% | -10.3% |
| 1981 | 0.5% | +27.2% |
| 1982 | 0.6% | +37.1% |
| 1983 | 0.7% | +11.3% |
| 1984 | 0.7% | -5.1% |
| 1985 | 0.7% | +3.6% |
| 1986 | 0.7% | +3.0% |
| 1987 | 0.8% | +6.3% |
| 1988 | 0.7% | -6.0% |
| 1989 | 0.6% | -11.1% |
| 1990 | 0.5% | -18.3% |
| 1991 | 0.5% | +3.9% |
| 1992 | 0.6% | +1.5% |
| 1993 | 0.6% | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 0.6% | +6.3% |
| 1995 | 0.6% | -2.1% |
| 1996 | 0.6% | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 0.6% | -5.0% |
| 1998 | 0.5% | -11.2% |
| 1999 | 0.5% | -6.8% |
| 2000 | 0.4% | -2.5% |
| 2001 | 0.5% | +9.0% |
| 2002 | 0.5% | +3.6% |
| 2003 | 0.6% | +15.9% |
| 2004 | 0.6% | +2.9% |
| 2005 | 0.6% | -7.2% |
| 2006 | 0.5% | -8.6% |
| 2007 | 0.5% | -3.1% |
| 2008 | 0.5% | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 0.5% | +5.6% |
| 2010 | 0.5% | -6.3% |
| 2011 | 0.5% | -3.2% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | -2.4% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | -3.6% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 0.4% | -9.0% |
| 2016 | 0.4% | -4.0% |
| 2017 | 0.4% | +5.4% |
| 2018 | 0.4% | +4.8% |
| 2019 | 0.5% | +9.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 6 |
| 1970s | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Malta
More economy & growth data for Malta
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.35 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.51 Percent per annum (2029)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 10.55 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.8133 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 38,963 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 5.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.7198 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 34,481 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 4.35 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.5878 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Malta?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Malta was 0.5% in 2019, according to Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Malta?
- The highest recorded value was 0.8% in 1987.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Malta?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.2% in 1970.
- How does Malta rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Malta ranks 153rd out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Malta?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malta data come from?
- The figures come from Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Military spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).